Protesters in front of Beirut's Justice Palace on Jan. 26, 2023. (Credit: João Sousa/L'Orient Today)
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Mount Lebanon public prosecutor Judge Ghada Aoun accused caretaker premier Najib Mikati of “blatantly interfering in justice” after caretaker Interior Minister Bassam Mawlawi instructed security forces not to "enforce her decisions." Mikati, in a letter to Mawlawi, said that Aoun — who is facing several dismissal requests — cannot continue her “money laundering” investigation of banks that refused to release select employees’ account information. Aoun on Monday pressed charges against Société Générale de Banque au Liban (SGBL) and its CEO, Antoun Sehnaoui — a week after similar indictments targeting Bank Audi and threats to initiate similar proceedings against any bank that maintains banking secrecy on the accounts of their chairperson, board members, auditors and supervisory committees. Mikati received a delegation of bank representatives soon after the charges against SBGL were filed. Mikati told Al Jadeed Tuesday night that he expects the strike to end "within 48 hours," without offering an explanation.
Banque du Liban issued yet another extension to Circular No. 161, which allows depositors to exchange lira for dollars at BDL’s Sayrafa rate. Until the end of March, depositors will be able to obtain a capped amount of dollars from banks at the Sayrafa rate — LL44,500 to the dollar as of Thursday, or roughly LL35,000 less than the parallel market rate. The circular was designed to facilitate access to dollars, thus reducing the lira’s volatility on the parallel market. While the central bank’s intervention initially allowed the lira to rebound from an then-all-time low of LL47,000 on the parallel market in December, the local currency has since lost an additional LL32,000 in value. Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati echoed some financial experts’ view that the “dollar crisis is political,” claiming that, if the executive power vacuum is filled, [the dollar] will not exceed LL30,000,” again without offering further explanation.
The ceiling of a house in Tayr Debba, in the Sour district of South Lebanon, collapsed yesterday after a 4.3-magnitude earthquake struck the nearby coast in the early morning. Homeowner Mohammad Fakih called on officials to help with restorations after his children’s bedroom ceiling collapsed. Last week, a similar collapse occurred in Kfar Roummane, in the Nabatieh district of South Lebanon, attributed to damages caused by tremors from the devastating Feb. 6 earthquake in Turkey and Syria, which killed more than 46,000 people. On Tuesday, rocks shaken loose by a 6.4-magnitude earthquake the previous evening blocked the entrance of a home in Qabit, Akkar governorate. Caretaker Interior Minister Bassam Mawlawi, after the Feb. 6 earthquake, called on local authorities to survey damages in their districts, amid expert reports of increased risk of building collapse. Tremors over the past weeks caused panic among residents across Lebanon, causing some to flee their homes during quakes. Hydrology researcher Naji Kehdy, nonetheless, told L’Orient Today that the quakes felt since Feb. 6 can be interpreted as “reassuring news since the multiplication of these small events technically keeps at bay the specter of a more violent tremor.”
Demonstrators blocked the main road to Mouhammara, at the southern entrance to Akkar, northern Lebanon, calling on authorities to mobilize in search of Sheikh Ahmad Rifai. Rifai has been missing since Monday night, L’Orient Today’s correspondent in the area reported. The Grand Mufti of Lebanon, Sheikh Abdellatif Derian, “followed up the case himself with the security forces, who denied imprisoning or arresting the sheikh,” the Akkar headquarters of Dar al-Fatwa said, urging people “not to spread rumors” about the cause of the cleric's disappearance.
Israeli flare launchers damaged two homes in the South Lebanon border village of Wadi al-Khansa, a local resident told L’Orient Today. The projectiles, however, did not cause any injuries because the homes were empty, the same source said. The United Nations Interim Forces in Lebanon (UNIFIL) — a peacekeeping force stationed at the southern Lebanese border — inspected the scene in coordination with the Lebanese army, UNIFIL spokesperson Andrea Tenenti told L'Orient Today. Israeli forces regularly violate Lebanese airspace, sometimes firing flares at night.
Yesterday, Kataeb leader MP Sami Gemayel sounded the alarm over stamp scarcity that could restrict state offices’ capacity to secure essential services. Gemayel suspected the shortage is linked to monopolization by sellers, calling on the public prosecution to punish those responsible for alleged "corruption" related to the stamps. The unavailability of stamps has caused difficulties in filing legal paperwork, particularly for mukhtars, lawyers and others forced to resort to “blackmailing” for stamps.
In case you missed it, here’s our must-read article from yesterday: “Opening the Beirut Art Center’s doors a little wider”
Compiled by Abbas Mahfouz